Colorado police make arrest in Alaska in baby’s death
Published Wednesday, May 7, 2008
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Stumble It!ANCHORAGE — A 22-year-old woman in Alaska was arrested and charged with murder in the death of a newborn found hidden away in a home in Colorado.
Police Chief Bill Gardner, of Grand Junction, Colo., said Morgan Hite was arrested Tuesday in Wasilla on charges of first-degree murder and child abuse resulting in death. She was ordered held without bond to be extradited to Colorado, according to the Anchorage Daily News and Denver Post.
Grand Junction police, who have been in Alaska since last week, worked with Alaska authorities before making the arrest. Police said the infant was found in a concealed area after Hite visited her parents. The body was found in the Grand Junction home of Hite’s father and stepmother the morning of April 29, Gardner said.
Investigators said Hite gave birth to the baby in Grand Junction and fled Colorado shortly thereafter. It was unclear when she returned to Alaska.
“The pathologist has determined the baby was alive at birth,” Gardner said. “We know that she didn’t report anything to the authorities... The baby was found by the stepmother and her father in a bedroom. The infant had been deceased for some time.”
Police have not disclosed the cause of death. The time of death also was to be determined by the medical examiner.
Gardner said the body was concealed in a place that was not easy to find.
Hite was booked at the Mat-Su Pre-Trial Facility on $500,000 cash bail on an Alaska charge of being a fugitive from justice, troopers said.
The Colorado charges do not allow her to be released on bail, Grand Junction police said.
Court records show Hite has received a number of traffic tickets but has no criminal history in Alaska. She has another 4-year-old child who was removed from her custody and given to the child’s father in Wasilla, Gardner said.
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There are way too many options available to women who do not or cannot take care of babies they have birthed. To waste a newborns life like this is disicable.
I couldnt even begin to guess as to what was in her mind. Truely sad for everyone involved, even the mother who has to live with what she did.
Exactly, there are SOOO many options for young mothers. There are women out there who can't bear children who would have happily loved and cared for this innocent child. I am disgusted with this story. This lady needs serious help; I mean how did her Parents not know she was pregnant and gave birth to a baby? Why or how was it found after it had been deceased for some time?? This sound fishy and Geez what a poor lil' baby. But thank our God that he has a better place in Heaven for her. She'll be up there playing with my daughter. What a sad sad story. I hope they throw everything at this girl......This is just sick.
It's stories like this that make people sick to there stomach. Knowing there are woman out there who want children, but will never bare children. With all the options offered to pregnant women, why choose to kill a innocent life. After almost losing my first child in child birth and having two miscarriages before having my second. I thank god everyday for my two beautiful precious gifts from god. And then I have to read where some stupid idoit leaves there newborn to die. Do the seriously not have any guilt or pain?? I couldn't even begin to imagine. And some great parents she had for them not to know she was 9 months pregnant and giving child birth. How the heck do you not notice? She will get what she deserves for killing a innocent life.
Colorado has the death penalty so maybe she will suffer the same fate.
Wow, I am so saddened by this, and the responses. What this young woman needs is help, love and support. She obviously had lots of turmail going on inside of her. What a nation of HYPOCRITES we are to want to "throw everything at this girl" ecept what she needs. I am sure she was given opportunity after opportunity to MURDER her child before giving birth yet she CHOSE LIFE for those 9 months. Sadly at a time of weakness, perhaps feeling all alone, condemned by friends and family she made a wrong choice that she will live with for the rest of her life. Thousands of young girls make the same CHOICE everyday and we call it FREEDOM not MURDER. Where is our compassion? We have vigils to stop the death of rapists and murderers but want someone who could have ABORTED her child to "get waht she deserves". We all deserve much more than we will ever see in this life. She is obviously a menace to society and should get the death penalty? Come on, who are you trying to kid. Lets work on those who truly are menaces to our society. My prayers are with this young lady, and I hope she is able to find all the help she needs.
When a woman brings a baby to term she can't help but feel responsible for it. What if she doesn't trust the supposed "options" she has? There are many reports of children being abused in foster care or adoptions (I realize that this isn't normally the case but it does happen). There are many potential adoptive parents who might raise our children with biases that we do not condone. The death of this baby does not raise a simple question and, I suspect, did not result from heartlessness.
Our country is run on a retributive mindset and justice system. No matter what the background or mental state or history of the offenders...people are always going to be quick to "give them what they deserve." It's really too bad. I totally agree with you, ak, on focusing on the real menaces to society. But again, that would mean showing sympathy (empathy?) toward those, like this woman, who committed a crime. I'm curious to know how she grew up and maybe the underlying factors contributing toward this kind of child abuse...
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